“I’ll pay you whether you cure her or kill her,” shouted the loyal husband.

After treating the woman a few weeks, she passed away.

With unseeming haste, the doctor sent the bereft man a bill for 1,000 rubles, but it received no attention. Subsequent letters were equally ignored. Eventually the doctor sued the delinquent defendant, referring the case to the Vilna Gaon.

The Gaon heard the arguments carefully and regarded the two litigants thoughtfully. It was unjust, thought the Gaon, to make the poor man sell his house and give the money to the avaricious practitioner and he determined to protect him.

After a few moments of thinking, the Gaon arose and called the doctor to him.

“What was your agreement with the de­fen­dant?” inquired the Gaon, again.

“Our agreement was that I was to get paid whether I cured or killed her.”

“Did you cure her?” asked the Gaon.

“No,” replied the doctor, reluctantly. “It was impossible.”

“Did you kill her?” was the next question.

“Oh no, I should say not,” answered the doctor.

“Then,” declared the Gaon, “you have no claim, for you neither cured her nor killed her.”